Freemasonry And The Early English Gilds.

and there hear a mass and make offering s in her honour ( in the Avorschepe of here ) and also in the afternoon of the same day or the next Sunday following , they shall be together to choose their Masters for the next year following . " * 4 . Quarterly communications were

provided by the Constitutions of Masonry , and are still maintained in England and in some feAV of the Grand Lodges of America . It will be remembered that in the account of the Revival of Masonry in 1717 as contained in the second

, edition of Anderson ' s Book of Constitutions , it is said that the brethren Avho assembled at the Apple Tree Tavern " . constituted themselves a Grand Lodge pro tempore in due form and fortliAvith revived the quarterly communications " —thus

implying that quarterly communications were the ancient usage of the fraternity . Now this same usage Avas observed by all the early Gilds . There is hardly one of them Avhose statutes or ordinances does not provide for four meetings in the year .

The Avord used for this meeting is morow speeche or , more commonly , mornspeeche , Avhich Mr . Way , in his notes to the Promptorium Ptwvulorwm , defines as " a term denoting a periodical assembly of a Gild . "

Thus in the ordinations of a Gild of St . Thomas [ of Canterbury , it is prescribed that "this Gild shall have four mornspeeches in the year . " In the Gild of St . Leonard , it " is ordained , by assent of the brethren to have four mornspeeches in the year . " The statutes of the Gild of

St . Peter at Lenne prescribed the four days as being , first after the Drynkyng or feast , probably St . Peter ' s day ( June 29 ) ; the second on the Sunday before Michaelmay day ( September 29 ); the third on the Sunday before Candlemas day (

February 2 ); and the fourth on the Sunday before St . Austin ' s day ( May 26 ); Avhich arrangement brings them very nearly Avithiu three months of each other , and thus makes them " quarterly communications . ' ' The folloAving regulation of the Gild of Garlekhitte ( London , 1375 ) shows a very great similarity in the design of these

quarterly meetings to those of the Masonic Fraternity : "Also the Masters and brethren aforesaid every year shall four times come together , at some certain place to speak touching the profit ancl rule of the aforesaid brotherhood under the penalty of a pound of wax

to the brotherhood . " 6 . The penalty above alluded to will remind us of another analogy between the customs of the Gilds and the Freemasons . Three tapers or lights , are a conspicuous and necessary part of the

furniture of every Lodge . We find a similar usage in the Gilds . In all the ordinances , provision is made for lights , and for this purpose , fines which are imposed , are almost ahvays paid in wax to be expended in the making of lights . The

folloAving extracts from the statutes of some of the early Gilds , will show the prevalence of the usage of lights : " There shall be found 5 round tapers , the weight of 20 pounds of Avax to be lig hted on the feast days , all 5 at all hours of the day , in worship ( honour ) of God and his mother the Virgin Mary and of Saint Catherine the glorious virgin and

martyr ancl of all . saints . Gild of St . Catherine . " There shall be found 7 round tapers the Aveight of 21 pounds of wax to be lit on high feast days , all seven at all hours of the day on Avorship of God and his mother Mary ancl of Saint Fabian and Sebastian

and of all saints . " Gild of Sts . Fabian and Sebastian . "It is ordained that ( there shall be ) among the brethren and sisters in their assembly a candle of Avax burning and a prayer said in Avorshiof God and of

p our Lady and of all saints and for all Christian souls ancl for all the brethren ancl sisters of the Gild . " Tailors' Gild , Norwich . But it is needless to make further citations . In all tho Gild constitutions this

provision for lights is to be found . As they were burnt by day as Avell as by night , it is evident that they Avere used symbolically , and it is equally evident that the usage of burning lights at their meetings has been derived by the Freemasons from the Gilds . But the masonic symbolism of the " lesser lights" is , of course , peculiar to the Order .